@Caiti Great questions! If you don’t have any symptoms, a full sexual health screen only requires a urine sample, a blood test and in some cases, a throat swab and an anal or vaginal swab that can be self-collected. You don’t even need to get undressed! Thanks to @MsBlueStreak for the link to everything you need to know about STI tests!
How often should you get tested?? Depends!
You should test as soon as possible if:
- you have unexplained genital or anal symptoms
- a sexual partner has been diagnosed with chlamydia, gonorrhoea, urethritis, syphilis, hepatitis B, or HIV (even if you don’t have symptoms yourself).
- you’ve had condomless sex with someone at high risk of HIV (e.g. traveling in a high prevalence country).
You should test once a year if:
- you’re only heterosexually active and have multiple partners.
- you’re a gay or homosexually active man with one partner.
You should test 3-6 monthly if:
- you’re a gay or homosexually active man with multiple partners & any condomless sexual contacts.
Of course these are broad guidelines, to find out what’s right for you, best to talk to your doctor or sexual health service!